Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan, the Second Minister of International Trade and Industry Malaysia and delegation from Malaysia participated in the 21st International Exhibition for Food, Drinks, Hospitality, Food Service, Bakery and Retail Industries (2017 FHC Shanghai) on 14 November 2017.
Overall, the 2017 FHC registered 2,350 participants from 73 countries and regions. Many participating countries including Malaysia set up their respective national pavilion at this exhibition. In addition, China’s major trading partners such as the United States of America, Italy, France, India, South Korea, Tunisia and Brazil had their promotional booths as well.
Participation of Malaysian business community in 2017 FHC Shanghai was coordinated by the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Malaysia (ACCCIM). This year, 28 Malaysian companies participated at the exhibition.
The exhibition provided opportunities for Malaysian entrepreneurs to explore collaboration with new business partners to export Malaysian food and beverage products to China as well as globally.
There are lots of opportunities for Malaysian companies to explore and sell Malaysian products which are very popular and favourable among the Chinese consumers. The middle-income population in China is becoming affluent and they have an affinity towards Malaysian products due to high quality and taste.
The China market gained traction and enormous interest from the Malaysian business community as a result of the Malaysia Promotion Programme 2016 in Shanghai, spearheaded by the Government of Malaysia.
Trade with China alone accounted for 16.2% of Malaysia's total trade in 2016, amounting to USD58.17 billion. China was Malaysia’s largest trading partner for the past 8 consecutive years (since 2009). On the other hand, Malaysia is China’s 7th largest global trading partner and the 2nd largest trading partner among ASEAN member states in 2016.
Trade with China in January-September 2017 expanded by 24.8% to RM212.94 billion compared with the corresponding period in 2016. Export to China surged by 35.3% to RM91.87 billion, due to higher exports of electrical and electronic (E&E) products, petroleum products, rubber products, chemicals and chemical products as well as liquefied natural gas (LNG). Import from China increased by 17.9% to RM121.08 billion.
In conjunction with the working visit, Ong took the opportunity to meet potential investors with strong interests from Shanghai to expand their businesses into Malaysia. The interests of companies from China reflect that Malaysia is an attractive location to invest and has the right policies and conditions in place to attract foreign businesses.
